EarthLink Bails Out On New Orleans.

The amount of bad publicity generated from a single financially motivated decision can sometimes be approximately as harmful as the loss the company was taking. Case in point:

“New Orleans is about to lose its municipal Wi-Fi? network? as EarthLink plans to halt its participation in the citywide project on May 18, an EarthLink spokesman said Friday.”

EarthLink representatives stated that the company was unable to find a buyer for the network, not entirely surprising given the city’s recent history. Given EarthLink’s less than stellar track record in cities such as as Boston, San Francisco and Sacramento, perhaps New Orleans is lucky to get out of the deal now.

EarthLink will be offering users broadband connections, but it's not clear if they'll be free, discounted, or full price.